Just announced: X's classic lineup performs first two albums at El Club in August

On Saturday, August 20th, the band called X from Los Angeles will perform their first album, 1980's Los Angeles, in its entirety, at the new kid on the block, Southwest's El Club. On Sunday, August 21st, they will perform their second LP, Wild Gift, from back to front. Two day passes are available here. They'll likely do some other songs each night, as well. Los Angeles clocks in at a classic Beatle-length of under 28 minutes.

A few key things to note:

1) This band has always been great live. I've seen them three or four times in the last three decades (the first for prom night in the mid 1980s at Disney World, hah). Their weirdly careening harmonies are always clear and keening, the guitars bright, and the whole thing doesn't feel as nostalgically-driven as most shows of its ilk. It doesn't feel weird at all to be a grown-ass person at a punk revival show, when the band in question is X.

2) L.A. punk might not have been first (hello, New York), or grimiest (greetings, Detroit), or weirdest (what's up, Cleveland and San Francisco). But as a whole, they totally had the best lyrics, the Los Angeles bands. Even the most dunderheaded SoCal pop-punk act or the worst Dangerhouse act (if there is such a thing) seemed to put a lot of energy into the words. Along with the Gun Club and Screamers, X's lyrics are pure poetry with a thickly noir edge to it. It's so much fun to shout that shit out loud at the top of your lungs, should you choose to do so.

You have to make these shows if you are remotely a fan of loud and fast, roots/Americana, strong female-fronted, rock 'n'roll type music. As they themselves sing on the first song off that debut LP, "The phone's off the hook—but you're not!"